*** World Darts Championship - Quarter Finals ***

Thought I'd get this up early and keep all 4 matches in one thread despite them being over 2 days. Last few days have gone well and hoping it continues towards the later stages as well. Now playing the best of 9 and I think the bookies are trying to screw us a bit especially on markets such as the high check. In previous years the QF line was always over/under 136.5 but this year it's now 140.5 which is usually for the SF. Quite sneaky I think and might result in people backing unders.

Michael Van Gerwen v Robert Thornton:

R3 - MVG bt Terry Jenkins 4-1
Ave: 99.62
180's: 3
HC: 128
CO%: 56%

Thornton bt Benito Van De Pas 4-0
Ave: 96.5
180's: 4
HC: 156
CO%: 35%

Opening quarter final sees the defending champ take on Robert Thornton for a place in the semis. MVG is winning quite comfortably but it's been a bit of a change from his usual MO. He's now finishing really well but not scoring as many 180's as previously and the question is can he keep that going? He takes on Thornton who is the only player left who hasn't dropped a set and he has been pretty impressive to date without ever being under any real pressure. If he finishes at above 40% he can make a match of this but under pressure I'm never that convinced by him. Looked at this match over and over and honestly can't see a bet from the outset. I fancy there might be a high check or 2 but at over 141 I think it's just too high a line for a best of 9.

Recommendation: No Bet

Gary Anderson v Peter Wright:

R3 - Anderson bt Cristo Reyes 4-1
Ave: 104.54
180's: 8
HC: 124
CO%: 43%

Wright bt Andy Hamilton 4-0
Ave: 102.6
180's: 5
HC: 104
CO%: 50%

2nd game tomorrow looks like the tie of the round for me between 2 seriously in form players. Anderson in the last 2 rounds has been awesome and every part of his game appears to be in good order. He is playing as well if not better than when he last reached the final here and right now I sense he has belief that this is his time. Wright on the other hand has gone along quietly but has been extremely impressive in reaching this stage. He demolished Hamilton and as is his game he scored well but took out the important finishes that really hurt opponents. I can see this being an extremely close match with lots of legs and as such I like the look of Anderson's maxes again. At the moment he has hit 25 in 56 legs which is 1 every 2.24 legs. In order to reach the line we need 25 legs and I think this is more than achievable. As a result I'm going to have a go at Gary being able to hit the necessary number.

Recommendation: 3pts win Gary Anderson over 10.5 maxes @ 6/5 (365)

Phil Taylor v Vincent Van Der Voort:

R3 - Taylor bt Kim Huybrechts 4-3
Ave: 102.52
180's: 4
HC: 96
CO%: 43%

VDV bt Dean Winstanley 4-2
Ave: 93.9
180's: 3
HC: 97
CO%: 38%

3rd quarter final takes place on Friday evening and it's one that Phil Taylor will be very happy with. With all due respect to Vincent I'm sure Phil is very confident of reaching yet another semi final as Vince has never been past this stage and may freeze. Taylor has averaged over 100 in all 3 games to date and came through a real test in the last match v Huybrechts. Eventually when push came to shove though he won the 7th set 3-0. I'm not convinced by him changing darts but I think he'd need to underperform to lose this match. VDV has had a great run and the prizemoney earned will give him another boost up the world rankings. However I would question if he has the belief to beat Phil that I think some other players do possess. Going to have a small bet on Phil to cover the handicap here as I think this could be a comfy 5-1 win.

Recommendation: 1pt win Phil Taylor -3.5 sets @ 8/11 (Sky)

Raymond Van Barneveld v Stephen Bunting:

R3 - Barney bt Adrian Lewis 4-3
Ave: 92.23
180's: 3
HC: 104
CO%: 38%

Bunting bt Michael Smith 4-2
Ave: 102.34
180's: 8
HC: 90
CO%: 39%

Final match of the round sees 5 times champ Barney take on the current BDO champ Stephen Bunting. I posted on the match thread last night that when Barney won v Lewis I think it was one of the most baffling results I'd ever watched. He never seemed to be in the match, was constantly outscored but for once actually dug in and took his chances when Lewis missed doubles. However bar his towelling in the R1 match he's not showed anything like the form needed to win this event. Bunting saved his best form for his win over Smith where he averaged over 100 and played really nicely. He's going to be very confident of another win here as if he gets on top of Barney and doesn't miss doubles then I think he will reach the semis. However the price on him to do so looks right to me as he can throw in the occasional stinker from out of nowhere. I was also tempted by Bunting maxes here but I think at times his darts are going in at funny angles and forcing him to switch. Based on current stats he's hitting a max every 3.27 legs so needs 33 legs to cover the spread and I think it will be touch and go if this happens.

Recommendation: No Bet

Summary: I've had a confident bet on Subtitles to cover his max line and a small bet on Phil to cover the handicap line on Friday. Best of luck to all and feel free to share any bets I might have missed. Best wishes for the New Year to all on here too and may all your bets be winners.
HH